TikTok LIVE chat and gifts in OBS: how it works and how to set it up
TikTok has no public API for LIVE chat or gifts, so an OBS browser-source overlay that shows them needs a helper app that reads your LIVE for you. OverlayCast uses TikFinity Desktop, a TikTok LIVE toolkit with free tools and paid plans (as of November 2026). Run it on the PC you stream from and connect it to your TikTok account; through its Event API/WebSocket setting it can re-broadcast chat, gifts and other events on a local WebSocket at ws://127.0.0.1:21213. A Browser Source in OBS on that same PC can listen to that socket. With OverlayCast you turn on Use TikFinity on this PC in Connections, paste your overlay URL into OBS, and keep TikFinity open while you are live. Chat and gifts then appear in the overlay, with gifts counted in coins.
Why TikTok needs a helper app
YouTube and Twitch publish official ways for developers to read live chat. TikTok does not. The maintainers of TikTok-Live-Connector, an open-source library many TikTok tools build on, say plainly that TikTok "does not offer a public official API" for livestream events, and describe their library as a reverse-engineering project that reads TikTok's internal Webcast service (TikTok-Live-Connector on GitHub, as of November 2026). EulerStream, which sells a hosted TikTok LIVE API, says the same in its FAQ (euler-api-sdk, as of November 2026).
So an OBS browser-source overlay that shows TikTok chat depends on a reader TikTok does not make, and such readers can stop working when TikTok changes its service, until their developers update them. TikTok's own streaming app, LIVE Studio, is a separate route that this guide does not cover.
How TikFinity's local WebSocket works
TikFinity is a set of TikTok LIVE tools with sound alerts, text-to-speech, goal and interactive overlays, a chatbot and an "Actions & Events" system, and it has a desktop app (tikfinity.zerody.one, as of November 2026). While TikFinity Desktop is open and connected to your LIVE, it can re-broadcast LIVE events (chat, gifts and more) on a WebSocket on your own computer, through its Event API/WebSocket setting:
ws://127.0.0.1:21213/Each message is a small piece of JSON with an event name (such as chat or gift) and its data: who sent it, the comment, the gift name and its value. TikFinity's own homepage does not document this address; community projects that use it do, and note that the port is a TikFinity setting and that the listener must run on the same PC as TikFinity (darinh/tiktok-overlays, as of November 2026).
127.0.0.1 always means "this computer". So a page loaded in OBS on your streaming PC can reach TikFinity, but a server on the internet cannot, and neither can OBS running on a second PC. The overlay may be hosted anywhere, but the part that listens to TikTok runs on your machine.
What an OverlayCast overlay does with it
Connecting
When you turn on Use TikFinity on this PC on the Connections page, your open overlays reload, and the ones that read chat start listening to ws://127.0.0.1:21213/. The events go straight from TikFinity to OBS. They do not pass through OverlayCast's servers.
If TikFinity is not running, the overlay does not break. It tries again after 1 second, then waits twice as long each time, up to 30 seconds between tries, and keeps trying for as long as the overlay is open. You can start OBS first and TikFinity later. Messages are de-duplicated by their ID, so a dropped connection that comes back does not replay chat you have already seen.
Which TikTok events are used
| TikFinity event | What the overlay does with it |
|---|---|
| Chat comment | A chat line, with the sender's name and profile picture. Your own messages get the owner badge and moderators get the moderator badge when TikFinity says so. |
| Gift | A paid event worth coins. The overlay counts a combo streak once, at its end, as the gift's coin value × the number sent. |
| Subscribe | A sub, for widgets that react to subs. |
| Like | Used only by Like Hearts, which floats hearts for taps. Every other widget ignores likes. |
| Follow, share, join, viewer count | Ignored. |
The ignored events are left out on purpose: several widgets would read any non-chat event as a paid event, so letting follows or taps through could fire alerts all stream.
Which widgets accept TikTok
49 of the site's widgets read TikTok once the switch is on; each one's customize page says so. They do it even if you never fill in a YouTube, Twitch or Kick channel, so TikTok-only streamers can use them as they are. They include Live Chat and Live Chat Bar, Donate Alert Box, Goal Bar, Top Supporters, Subathon Timer, Danmaku, Emoji Rain, Viewer Pet, Boss Raid, Like Hearts, Hype Meter and Chat Poll.
The other widgets, such as clocks, text labels, Now Playing and Weather, do not read TikTok. Also worth knowing:
- Raid Radar (YouTube, Twitch, Kick) and Live Counter (YouTube) work from your channel but do not take TikTok.
- A widget whose source is set to Streamlabs never counts a TikTok gift, because Streamlabs may deliver the same gift too and it would count twice. Chat-reading widgets in that mode still take TikTok chat.
- In Live Chat, TikTok lines go through the same filters as other platforms (hidden bots, bot commands, blocked accounts), and a gift shows as a paid line with its coin amount.
Set it up step by step
- Install TikFinity Desktop on the Windows PC that runs OBS. Open it and connect it to your TikTok account.
- Check its WebSocket setting. If TikFinity's settings show an Event API or WebSocket option, keep it on, with port 21213.
- Sign in to OverlayCast with Google or Twitch, open Connections, and turn on Use TikFinity on this PC. There is no link or key to copy.
- Build your overlay. Pick a widget, for example Live Chat, choose a look, and copy its overlay URL. Add your YouTube, Twitch or Kick channel too if you multistream; leave them empty if you only stream on TikTok.
- Add it to OBS on the same PC. In OBS, add a Browser Source and paste the overlay URL.
- Go live with TikFinity open. Send a test comment from a second account. If nothing appears, check that TikFinity Desktop is running and connected, and that you are looking at OBS rather than a browser tab.
To stream on TikTok from OBS at all you need a stream key. TikFinity's own guide lists 1,000+ followers, age 18+ and no active community strikes as requirements, and notes that TikTok LIVE Studio runs only on Windows (TikFinity blog guide, updated January 2026). Check your own TikTok settings, as access varies.
Limits to know before you rely on it
- It must be the streaming PC. TikFinity and OBS have to run on the same computer.
- TikFinity must be open. If it closes or loses your LIVE, TikTok events stop until it is back. YouTube, Twitch and Kick in the same overlay are unaffected.
- OBS, not a browser tab. Recent Chrome and Edge versions can block a website from reaching your own computer. The OBS Browser Source can reach it today; a normal browser tab may not.
- Pro. Every widget that reads TikTok is a Pro widget. If Pro lapses, the overlay goes invisible in OBS until you renew. See pricing.
TikFinity overlays, Social Stream Ninja and OverlayCast compared
These are not strict alternatives: Social Stream Ninja and OverlayCast can both read from TikFinity. Competitor details below come from each tool's own pages and store listings, as of November 2026.
| TikFinity overlays | Social Stream Ninja | OverlayCast | |
|---|---|---|---|
| What it is | TikTok LIVE toolkit: sound alerts, text-to-speech, goals, chatbot, actions | Browser extension or desktop app that captures chat from many sites | Hosted overlay widgets you design in the browser |
| Price (as stated) | Says its tools are free to use; also sells paid plans | Free; open source (GPLv3) | Pro widgets, 30-day trial with no card; see pricing |
| How TikTok is read | TikFinity connects to your LIVE itself | The extension reads your open LIVE page, or TikFinity as a read-only fallback | Listens to TikFinity on your PC |
| Must stay open | TikFinity | Your LIVE page with chat visible, or TikFinity | TikFinity, on the PC that runs OBS |
| Other platforms in one overlay | Built for TikTok LIVE | Many sites, including YouTube, Twitch and Kick | YouTube, Twitch and Kick (plus OneComme in Live Chat) |
| Styling | TikFinity's own overlay designs | Themes, URL options, custom CSS and JS | Designed themes and layouts (Live Chat has 39 themes and 18 layouts); no custom CSS |
Sources: TikFinity, TikFinity's OBS guide, TikFinity Mobile on the App Store (lists a TikFinity Pro subscription), Social Stream Ninja, its TikTok quick start and its external sources page.
TikFinity's own overlays are a direct option if you stream only on TikTok and want TikTok-specific features such as sound alerts and text-to-speech. You add them to OBS as browser sources.
Social Stream Ninja is free, open source and open to custom CSS. Its extension reads your LIVE page, which has to stay open with chat visible.
OverlayCast sits on top of TikFinity rather than replacing it. It fits if you multistream and want TikTok, YouTube, Twitch and Kick in one designed chat box, or want TikTok gifts to drive widgets like a goal bar, alerts or a boss fight. You can keep using TikFinity's sound alerts and text-to-speech at the same time.
FAQ
Does TikTok have an official API for LIVE chat and gifts?
No. TikTok does not publish an API for reading LIVE events as they happen, so an OBS browser-source overlay that shows TikTok chat depends on a reader TikTok does not make. TikFinity is one such reader; it is not made by TikTok.
Does TikFinity have to stay open while I stream?
Yes. The OverlayCast overlay listens to TikFinity on your own computer, so when TikFinity is closed there is nothing to listen to. You can open it after OBS: the overlay keeps trying in the background and connects within about 30 seconds of TikFinity starting.
Can I use TikFinity on one computer and OBS on another?
Not with this setup. The overlay connects to 127.0.0.1, which always means the computer the overlay itself is running on. TikFinity and OBS have to be on the same PC.
Why do I not see TikTok chat in the preview on the website?
The preview on the customize page plays demo data. Real TikTok events reach only the hosted overlay URL, and only where it can reach TikFinity on your PC. Check it in the OBS Browser Source, not in a normal browser tab, because recent Chrome and Edge versions can block a website from talking to your own computer.
Are TikTok likes, follows and shares counted?
Chat, gifts and TikTok subscriptions are used. Likes are used only by the Like Hearts widget, which floats a heart for them. Follows, shares, joins and viewer counts are ignored, because several widgets would read any non-chat event as a paid event.
Can one chat box show TikTok together with YouTube, Twitch and Kick?
Yes. Live Chat and Live Chat Bar mix TikTok lines with YouTube, Twitch and Kick, and when TikTok is on every line carries a small platform mark so viewers can tell where it came from.
Is this free?
TikFinity says its TikTok LIVE tools are free to use and also offers paid plans (as of November 2026); check that your TikFinity plan includes its Event API/WebSocket. On OverlayCast, every widget that reads TikTok is a Pro widget. A new account gets one 30-day Pro trial with no card; current prices are on the pricing page.
Try it
Turn on TikFinity in Connections, then start with Live Chat for a multi-platform chat box, Donate Alert Box for gift alerts, or Like Hearts to turn TikTok taps into floating hearts. Every widget is on the widget gallery.